This week, seeing how this is a blog about technology, we
will talk about blogs and blogging. A
blog is a good way to get information out to the masses, without really
worrying about who you did and didn’t send it to. Blogs are a place for you to say what you are
feeling, thinking, or just like this blog, give information on a topic you want
others to know more about. You can even
have your student’s blog about what is going on in your class to share with
their parents, classmates, school, and community in a safe and secure way. Blogs can be public, semi-private or
private. Who you want to reach with your
blog will determine which type security you will want to use with you blog.
Why would you want to blog as a teacher?
A blog is a good way to communicate with parents about what is
going on in your classroom. This is a
way to go paperless if you have a class newsletter. Obviously, those that don’t have access to
the electronic version of your newsletter/blog, will still need the paper version
of the newsletter. In a way, a blog is
like a class webpage. You can post the
same material that you would have on a webpage on a blog. You can still restrict who can and can’t see
your blog, and have the ability to approve or disapprove comments and posts. A blog still allows you to post pictures, but
it is more of a way to include narrative information to those who read your
blog.
As a teacher, a blog is also a good way to get new
information on just about anything out to other teachers. In a way, a professional development
opportunity for you and those that you teach with, even others from around the
world. Just because you don’t want to
write a blog of your own, there are many blogs out there that you can follow to
help you find new and cool tools and resources to use in your classroom. Finding the right ones to follow is the
key. Start with one to follow, then
maybe add some more. You may find out,
they aren’t posting topics that are good for you, then you can find someone
else to follow.
How can my own students blog?
There is a site called KidBlog, just one of many, that
allows you to control your class blog from setup to posting options to who can
view and comment on posts. Students can
select their name from a dropdown menu, which will be set up when you
“register” your class, to be able to log in to post to the blog. Students don’t even need to remember a
username, but must remember a password.
You can setup the blog so that you have to approve the post or comment for
it to post to the classes blog. You can
make the blog only accessible to your class, to guests who have a password, or
open to the web. This is a good way for
your class to work on their writing and be able to share it with their
classmates and parents in a no hassle manner.
Obviously, KidBlog isn’t the only classroom blogging site
that you can use. There are others out
there that may have some of the same functionality as KidBlog. However, the options that I have seen so far
are very useful for a class blog. The
security you have as a teacher for your students writing, and seeing what they write
and comment on before it posts to the web for your approval are important tools. This allows you more control and the ability
to stop inappropriate posts or comments before they are posted to the blog for all to see.
As a teacher, you have more options for your own use to have
your own blog. For your personal blog,
or one associated with the school, you can use many different blogging
platforms. This blog was created using
Google’s Blogger, which can be accessed using a Google account. There is also Word Press and EduBlogs, to
name a few. Some are free and others you
will have to pay for. What you use is up
to you and what you want to do with your personal or class blog. Every blog hosting site has it advantages and
disadvantages. What you use is
ultimately up to your own preferences.
Just remember, once you post it is on the net for posterity.
Resources:
Blogs to possibly follow:
Teacher and student blogs are a great way of introducing students to their own writing and reading.
ReplyDeletehttp://blogs.kqed.org/mindshift/2011/08/six-reasons-why-kids-should-know-how-to-blog/ Another resource.
ReplyDelete